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OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

I've heard various people and doctors suggest I wean, including my husband, and usually just nod and essentially ignore the comment. (With my husband I gave it some thought before ignoring it)

This time when my OBGYN recommended weaning, I thought she might have a point. I am lazy and would not make a project out of weaning (had intended to let my son wrap up on his own). But now I am trying to decided if it's a smart idea to be more active in speeding up his weaning.

My son is 2 and a half so it's not exactly "crucial" that he continue. But I work full time and I think he and I really enjoy the calm close nursing sessions before and after work. I also think nursing has contributed to his great health.

I am on the verge of getting pregnant again (assuming goes well) and my doctor thinks I would be over-taxing my body to be nursing one while being pregnant with another.
My issues are that I am high risk both for "advanced maternal age" :-) and some blood clotting issues that involve a lot of monitoring throughout. I am also going OFF of a prescription drug right now, as a personal choice that I'd rather not be on it while pregnant, although it will be challenging to be without it. --all these contribute to me thinking I SHOULD do what it takes to take great care of myself to get through the preganancy & postpartum times without wreaking havoc on myself physically and emotionally. I have started focusing on healthy eating an exercise for example.

So I am wondering :

Is there in fact a benefit to weaning such as implied by the doctor? Will the pregancy be noticably easier or harder (emotionally or physically) if I am or am not still nursing my toddler?
I am just wondering if the doctor is making a general assumption or if I really would benefit by weaning.

Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

I don't think advanced maternal age should really be a factor in decision making about this. On your other issue, I don't really know much about that. I wanted to say that if it is too much on your body, your supply will drop anyway, I think. During most pregnancies, supply drops because of hormonal changes and your son may wean himself early on.

Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

My understanding is the fetus takes what it needs no matter what so make sure you eat well and take your pre-natal vitamins. Most women notice a supply drop and I think most kids over 2 will self wean when that happens (which makes it easier for lazy moms (I count myself one here btw DS would still be nursing if I hadn't got pregnant).

You do need to take of yourself, it is in eveyone's best interests. It is really hard when working and looking after a 2yo and pg. Would you be willing to monitor the whatever it is that has you on prescription meds and go back on if you seemed to be having issues. (I, for example, would have rather not taken zoloft when I was pg, but really wasn't coping and was being a terrible parent to DS)

proud but exhausted working mammy to two high needs babies

my surprise baby: the one and only D-Man born 3 weeks late (5/5/08) at 9 lbs 14 oz and 21.5 inches, and

the shock H-Girl born about a week late (10/7/09) at 8lbs 15oz and 20.75 inches.

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Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

I was 36 when I had DD1 via emergency c-section. At that time, my OBGYN told me not to get pregnant again for 1 year. DH and I knew we wanted another. We waited a year and did not wean DD1. Our first month of trying, we conceived even though I was 38!!

At that point, I was told to wean as it may cause early contractions by a nurse in my prenatal care clinic. I just ignored her. DD1 weaned at 17 months (more due to my work schedule making me unavailable ).

Everyone's body is different. I would ask your OBGYN if there was anything SPECIFIC to you as to why they're recommending weaning or if it's just an "in general" statement. If there's nothing specific, I'd just ignore them.

Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

My OB wanted me to wean before I got pregnant, too. I did not follow her advice and wean as I know several mmas on here had nursed throught pregnancies. DD self weaned just after her 3rd birthday, a couple of months before DS was born.

Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

I would ask your OBGYN if there was anything SPECIFIC to you as to why they're recommending weaning or if it's just an "in general" statement. If there's nothing specific, I'd just ignore them.

The only women who really should consider weaning are those whose fertility is severely impacted by nursing, and those who are at risk of preterm labor. Nursing a toddler will not "steal" nutrients from the growing fetus, particularly because toddlers tend not to nurse all that much.

Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

Originally Posted by @llli*mommal

The only women who really should consider weaning are those whose fertility is severely impacted by nursing, and those who are at risk of preterm labor. Nursing a toddler will not "steal" nutrients from the growing fetus, particularly because toddlers tend not to nurse all that much.

Yes, this exactly. I nursed my daughter for about the first half of my pregnancy with my son (until she weaned herself), and believe me, there were no nutrients "stolen" from my son. He came out weighing 10lbs 1oz, so he was not lacking in nutrition.

I think OB's who advise moms to wean before getting pregnant (or during their pregnancies) are woefully uninformed on how nursing affects (or doesn't affect) pregnant women.

IRL all my friends call me Buff, Wife to CB since 10/11/2003

Mom to DD - "MJ" born 9/2007 @ 8lbs 10oz, 21.5" She's 6 years old!
My journey nursing MJ started HERE, but we got through it and she breastfed 19.5 months, self-weaned on 5/17/09

Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

My daughter was still nursing when I was pregnant with my son. My supply did drop quite a bit early in the pregnancy, but that did not stop her (she was 18mo when I got pregnant). My nipples hurt a lot when she nursed, which seems to be common when nursing during a pregnancy. I also had contractions when she would nurse but my Dr wasn't concerned with it at the time. I ended up having a complicated pregnancy and my son was born very early, but I'm assured by 4 lactation consultants, my OB, and a high-risk OB that it had nothing to do with me nursing my daughter. All evidence points to a blood clotting disorder, although I haven't been tested yet. Once my son was home from the NICU and we were tandem nursing, I will say I found that challenging. But, my daughter was quite a bit younger than your son will be when you have your second, so it may not be the same for you. I nursed my daughter until she was 3yrs 7mo and my son is 19mo and still nursing.

Mommy to:

Emmalynn Marie
Born at 37 weeks on 12/22/06
5lbs 1oz 19 1/2in

Owen Charles
Born at 29 wks 6 days on 01/17/09
2lbs 14oz 15in
In NICU for 2 months

Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

Thanks, ladies. I wasn't really concerned that a fetus would somehow lose out on nutrients. I guess when my OB said it would be too "taxing" to have both the fetus and the toddler taking from me, it was more in relation to my choice to wean off zoloft. It made sense but then I just wondered, would it really BE (feel) all that taxing?
When I think (guess) what it would be like, I already worry that being pregnant I'll be too tired to be as involved with my son as usual, and I would be happy to let him nurse to stay close if he wanted to.

I guess the reality is, IF it does feel like "too much", THEN I can decide to wean. I don't want to wean pre-emptively assuming I'll be overwhelmed.

THANK YOU ladies for the support! I could never ask anyone I know in real life because I always get responses like "well of course! why would you NOT wean??"

Re: OBGYN recommended weaning before I get pregnant. Not sure.

If you're coming off Zoloft, I'd just note that cutting down on nursing sessions or weaning can increase "the blues," and some moms report what feels a lot like post-partum depression after weaning. This probably depends on how often you were nursing before weaning, and how abruptly weaning occurs, though.